Méta Harmony

At the center of the catalogue for the exhibition of the same name at the Museum Tinguely, Basel, curated by Annja Müller-Alsbach and Sandra Beate Reimann, stand the sound-producing machine sculptures of Jean Tinguely. Tinguely’s sculptures generate noises, sounds, and apparently random, self-performing music. This musical side then reached a climax with the four “Méta-Harmonie” music machines between 1978 and 1985.

The catalogue and exhibition address developments both in music, with works that deal with machines, and in which machines comprise the instruments and/or producers of sounds for pieces. The spectrum extends from the avant-garde until today.